Akureiken
by Insignificance
Summary: The Demon Fist. Akane aquired a strange new technique, and now Ranma and the rest must find her before she kills everyone in her path!


Everyone has something they treasured: a photo, a piece of jewelry, perhaps, or maybe even just a memory. For me, the one thing I treasured beyond all things is this necklace.   
  
It's not really the necklace; it's the bright gem attached to the necklace that is so important to me. It's my only link to Her, the mother of all creation and destruction, the symbol of everything humans have ever known and will ever know. Without Her, there will be nothing.   
  
But that isn't really why I treasure this tiny gem so much. It's because in this more and more chaotic life of mine, She is the only one that will always be there. She is the only one that will not change. And she will always help me, no matter what. I can depend on her, when there is no one else I can trust. She is my savior.   
  
And that is why I killed him. He never should have tried to steal the necklace from me. Any of my other jewelry, I wouldn't have spared a glance. But he had tried to steal this gem, the only thing that connected me to Her.   
  
I killed him. I killed a little boy.   
  
He couldn't have been more than 10 years old. I knew he doesn't deserve this, but I couldn't stop myself. I tore him limb from limb.  
  
I'm a murderer.   
  
I could see my friends stare at me in horror.   
  
I'm a murderer.  
  
I killed a little kid. I got up and ran. 'It's not my fault! He tried to steal the one most important thing from me! It's not my fault! He shouldn't have tried to steal the pendent! It's his fault, not mine! No! NOT ME!!' I babbled out those words repeatedly, never stopping or pausing to rest.  
  
I killed him. I killed a little kid. I'm a murderer.  
  
~**~  
  
Tendo Nabiki stared at the pristine white wall with a childlike fascination. She hadn't blinked for over thirty minutes, and it doesn't seem that she's going to blink now.  
  
"Is she alright?" Her father's voice penetrated the thick haze inside her skull, but the words seemed far away, as if spoken in a distance.   
  
"She is fine. She is only in shock," the doctor said. "I suggest we give her time and rest. She'll be fine in a while."   
  
Nabiki felt someone taking her arm gently, and lowering her onto the white bed. She feels tired. And sleepy. But she doesn't want to go to sleep. She knew something's waiting for her in sleep, something she really, really doesn't want to see.   
  
She tried to struggle, but they just shot some drug into her system to subdue her. Her eyes slowly closed even as she screamed inside her mind for help.  
  
But as soon as her eyes fully closed, the nightmare began. Blood was everywhere, covering the dirty alley, the garbage dumpster, the brick walls of small apartment buildings, even smearing across some of the windows.   
  
She wanted to turn from the sight, to vomit until there was nothing left in her stomach. But she couldn't move, she was glued to her place by her fear and horror.   
  
It wasn't really the blood that made her so horrified. After all, when you live in a house filled with martial artists, you're bound to see some blood. No, it wasn't the blood; it was the disemboweled body of a young boy scattered across the alley that made her sick.   
  
And the fact that her younger sister had done it.   
  
Nabiki took a deep breath. And screamed.   
  
~~ ~~ ~~  
  
  
~* Akurei-ken *~  
~The Demon Fist~  
  
Silver Star  
bailuli@hotmail.com  
or  
shannonli@hotmail.com  
  
Part One  
  
  
~~ ~~ ~~  
  
My heart was pounding inside my chest. I'm afraid. I think the neighbor can hear my heartbeat and they will call the police. And if that happens, then I'm finished.  
  
Tendo Akane would no longer exist. She will be executed for First-Degree murder of a 10-year-old boy.   
  
And even if I wasn't executed, I'll probably be cast out of the Tendo family, for killing a defenseless foe.   
  
In Martial Arts, honor is everything. It's fine to defend yourself, of course, but killing can only happen if it was a formal challenge, and that your opponent is at least your equal or older in age. Your opponent can not be younger than you unless it is proven that he or she is a satisfactory opponent, meaning that he or she is at least your level in Martial Arts.   
  
But the boy was at least eight years below my age. I didn't exactly challenge him, either, and he is only a street rat, not a Martial Artist. Which means he is nowhere near my level in Martial Arts.   
  
Which means I broke the Code of Honor. [2] And that means if I'm caught, then I will be wiped out from this Earth.   
  
I can't let that happen. I promised Mother that I would live and carry on her legacy. I promised her that I would learn the full extend of what she taught me, and then passed it on to my children.   
  
I will not fail her, even if it would kill me, I will not fail her. It is a promise that I will make true.   
  
And that is the reason I'm here at home, sneaking down the hall like a thieve. I feel like a thieve, too. Technically, this is no longer my home.  
  
But I have to get some of my things and the stuff that are essential for traveling on the road. I know everyone is at the hospital, with Nabiki-oneesama and Yuka-chan. This is something not even Ranma can escape from going to.   
  
Sneaking into my room is quite easy, not counting the fact that I'm jumping at every little sound, of course. I pulled out a black duffel bag and begin to methodically putting the things I need into it neatly. Mother taught me how to put all the essential things in a bag for travel with the least amount of fuss and weight. So when I'm done packing all the things I need, and a few others that I wanted to keep, the duffel bag looks as if it wasn't even half filled.   
  
I stood up and took one last look at the place I've spent my past 18 years in. No tears fell. Now is not the time for tears. But after a few hours, when I'm safe in the forest, or on the road, perhaps I'll cry. But not now.  
  
I know perfectly well why I'm doing this, of course. After all, as the former heir to the Tendo Dojo, I did carefully read and memorized the Martial Arts Code of Honor. If a person is to be cast out of their family, there must be a ceremony performed, where the elder of the family will make them cut a minor vein and let out one goblet of blood. That blood will be pour onto the Earth, thus making the person no longer a part of that family, because he or she no longer has the blood of that family.   
  
However, if the person who is supposed to be cast out was not present, the ceremony could not be performed. In order to cast out someone, the ceremony MUST be performed. And so as long as I wasn't caught, or found, I will continue to be a Tendo.  
  
I need the family name. I need it in order to continue my training in Martial Arts. I need it to start a family. And I need it to pass down the technique Mother had passed to me. If I don't have the family name, then I might as well already failed Mother. And that's one thing I promise will never happen.   
  
And I absolutely will NOT endanger my family's lives.   
  
I jumped out of my window and onto the roof. I can't afford anyone seeing me walking out of my house with a duffel bag. Ranma will come after me if someone told him that I walked out of the house with luggage, and I wouldn't even be halfway to the train station before he caught up with me.  
  
Ranma. Despite the promise of not crying until I'm at a distance from here, the tears fell. I didn't shed a tear when I realized that I will be leaving my family behind. No moisture fell when I admit to myself that my family will forever reject me. But...Ranma...that single name could make me tremble, could make me cry, and could make me smile.   
  
And now, I will bear with the knowledge that the man I love will always look at me with hate and contempt for what I had done. Not that he doesn't hate me even before this whole mess. I smiled bitterly. I'll bet he's very glad that he doesn't have to marry me, anymore.   
  
I jumped from roof to roof. Two years of hanging around Ranma and his entourage of trouble can do a lot of things to you, and not all of them bad.[1]  
  
And as I raced toward the train station, I whispered a phrase that Ranma will probably never hear from me. "Aishiteru, Ranma."  
  
~**~  
  
"Hey, mister, have you or anybody in your family seen this girl, Tendo Akane, traveling through here maybe a couple of days ago?" Ranma asked, holding up a school photo of Akane, the only picture he had of her.   
  
The farmer whom he had shown the picture to shuddered. "I certainly hope not."  
  
Ranma frowned. "What does that mean?"  
  
"Tendo Akane's a murderer. She killed that boy in cold blood and then chopped him into pieces. If she had passed here, and my grandkids saw her, they would probably be like that boy by-"  
  
The farmer didn't even finish the sentence before he was lifted by his shirtfront, by a very angry Saotome Ranma.   
  
"He-Hey! What the- put me down, boy!"  
  
"Listen up, old man," Ranma said in a dangerously low tone. "Akane is not a cold-blooded killer. She's not that kind of girl. She wouldn't do something like this!"  
  
"Ran-chan, calm down," Ukyou said gently, coaxing him in letting the scared stiff farmer go. Ranma turned to Ukyou, his face twisted with rage.  
  
"Did you heard him, Uchan?" he asked in an incredulous tone. "He accused Akane of being a cold-blooded murderer!" By the end of the sentence, he was positively shaking with rage, and many other emotions Ukyou couldn't identify. But even the most untrained eyes could see the helplessness in Ranma's posture.   
  
Ukyou stepped up to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Come on, Ran-chan, let's go back. Maybe there might be something." Ranma nodded mutely, head down and eyes shadowed, he began the walk back to Nerima.  
  
~**~  
  
I huddled under the big tree in the nice little park, and watched as the rain continued to fall.  
  
I heard that Ranma was looking for me. He was looking for me. I smiled bitterly. More likely than not, he was looking for me so that I can be made outcast as soon as possible so he can have his wedding with one of his 'cute fiancée's.   
  
I heard that a girl accompanied him. They said that she has long brown hair pulled back by a white headband. That would be Ukyou. Of all of Ranma's fiancées, she's the one I want Ranma to be married to. Unlike Shampoo, whom I think is only after Ranma because he is so strong and powerful, Ukyou cares a great deal about Ranma. After all, they had been best friends in their childhood.   
  
For the past two days in which I hid in this little park, I often prayed that he'll marry Ukyou instead of Shampoo. Kodachi isn't a problem. I know for a fact that he doesn't like Kodachi. The only reason he isn't treating Kodachi like how he treated Kuno is because Kodachi is a girl, and he doesn't hit girls. In fact, I think Kodachi repulses Ranma. Not that I blame him, of course. The girl's a total nutcase.   
  
As for Shampoo...I know quite well how the Amazons treats men, and if Ranma marries Shampoo, then he will be nothing more than just another men in the Amazon village, nothing special. If he indeed marries Shampoo, then all of his works in his 18 years will be undone. The Amazons doesn't respect men. And if he thinks that when he marries Shampoo, he'll get all the secret techniques of the Amazons, then he'll be quite disappointed. I'm not oblivious. Almost all of the techniques that Cologne taught Ranma were only taught to the female warriors of the Amazon. I'll bet all my money that she only taught him to make him marry Shampoo.   
  
I don't hate Shampoo. I respect her courage, her persistence, and her skills. But I just don't think she's right for Ranma.   
  
But then again, I'm not a god. I wouldn't know even if my life depends on it.   
  
~**~  
  
Ranma shifted slightly in his seat, then shifted the other way. He's nervous. The doctor had pronounced Nabiki and Yuka well two days ago. Ranma had just arrived back in the Tendo Dojo. He had walked two days to get back here.   
  
Nabiki had refused to tell them about what had happened at first. Everyone can understand, of course. It's not everyday you see your sister go nuts and killed a little boy in front of you.   
  
Everyone was there. Soun sat at the head of the table. Ukyou was sitting beside Ranma. Ryouga was off by himself in one of the corners. He had gotten further than any of them, mostly due to his bad sense of direction, but he made it back to Nerima at the exact moment Ranma stepped through the door. Shampoo and Mousse were also searching, which surprised him a bit. He didn't thought that they would help him. But then again, Shampoo could be doing it to somehow lure Ranma into marrying her. Mousse would follow her anywhere.   
  
The old ghoul was nowhere to be found.   
  
A few minutes later, Kasumi came into the living room with a tray of tea in her hands. Nabiki and Yuka followed behind her. For once, Kasumi's smile was not there.  
  
Everyone sipped their tea politely. The air was thick with tension. Finally, the last cup was put down and they could finally ask questions.  
  
"What happened?" Ranma asked, actually demanded, as soon as the last person's teacup was down on the table. Kasumi looked at him disapprovingly, but he was too absorbed in making Yuka and Nabiki talk to notice the disapproving glance.  
  
After a few strained silence, Yuka started the tale. "We were going to spend the day at the mall, Akane, Sayuri, and I. We decided that I should come and pick Akane up, then meet Sayuri at one of the Cafe at the mall. Nabiki also needs to go shopping, and thought that if we are going to go shopping, she might as well come along and maybe get us a couple of discounts." Yuka started to shake, then took a deep breath to calm her down. "We were late. So we decided to cut through an alley to get there quicker. We were halfway through the alley when..." Yuka stopped talking and bowed her head. Everyone can tell she was trying to hold back tears.  
  
"We were halfway through the alley when a little boy, no older than 10 I estimated, ran by us," Nabiki continued. Her voice was cold, and her mask was impenetrable as a ten-inch slab of ice. "The alley was dark. All I saw was a blur. The next thing I know, Akane had pounced on the boy and was-" Nabiki's mask cracked a bit and a haunted look appeared in her eyes. "She was tearing him apart like a straw doll that she doesn't like." She closed her eyes. "She was like a wild animal."  
  
"Like the Neko-ken," Ranma whispered.  
  
"You are partially correct, Son-in-law." The old Amazon warrior hopped into the living room on her cane.   
  
Ranma jumped up and narrowed his eyes at the elder Amazon. "What do you mean I'm partially correct?"  
  
"Sit down, Son-in-law," Cologne said calmly, unfazed by the suspicion in Ranma's eyes. She waited until Ranma was sitting down before sitting herself. "I think we have quite a dangerous situation in our hands right now."  
  
"What do you mean?" Soun asked calmly. He doesn't seemed to care that his daughter disappeared.  
  
"There are altogether three ultimate techniques," Cologne began, seemingly to be choosing her words carefully. "One of them is the Neko-ken, the Cat Fist. Another is the Sakkiken, the Blood Fist. And the last one, the most powerful one, is the Akurei-ken, the Demon Fist." She stopped, letting everyone absorb what she just told them.  
  
"Okay, old ghoul, what does all this connects to Akane?" Ranma asked.  
  
"Wait a moment, Son-in-law," Cologne said patiently. She turned to Nabiki and Yuka. "Repeat what you saw when the boy rushed by Akane."  
  
Nabiki narrowed her eyes, her eyes distant. "I'm not sure. Like I said, it was dark. I think he...reached up? Wait a minute...He reached up and was about to snatch something from around Akane's neck."  
  
Cologne nodded. "Now tell me, do you know what that object is?"  
  
"Why do you want to know?"  
  
"I think what you tell us will help me determine what the problem is," Cologne said evasively.   
  
"Fine. I think it's a necklace."  
  
Cologne narrowed her eyes. "Is that all?"  
  
Nabiki's eyes suddenly widened, but otherwise, there was no other outward sign of surprise. "I remember. It's-it's Mother's ruby pendent. She must have given it to Akane in those months when she asked to be left alone with her-" She stopped abruptly.   
  
Cologne's posture suddenly turned from relaxed to tense. "If what you said is true, then we have a big problem in our hands." She turned to Soun. "Did your wife asked to be left alone with your daughter, Akane, before she died?"  
  
Soun didn't answer.  
  
"Answer me!" Cologne commanded. It was the first time that anyone had ever seen her so tense and...not angry, but something like that.   
  
When Soun answered, his voice was cold. "I do not have a daughter named Akane. I have a daughter named Kasumi. I also have a daughter named Nabiki. But I do not have a daughter named Akane." [3]  
  
"What?" Ranma whispered in disbelieve. The room was silent.  
  
"I don't have a daughter named Akane," Soun repeated. "From this day on, I pronounce Akane to be out cast from the Tendo Dojo. As soon as she is found, we are to prepare for the ceremony.  
  
"Daddy?!"   
  
"Father!"   
  
"You can't do that!"  
  
"Why?" Ranma's soft voice cut through the shouts quite effectively. "Why are you doing this?"  
  
For a moment, Soun's eyes weren't so cold. "As the former heir of the Tendo Dojo, she have read and memorized most, if not all, of the Martial Arts Code of Honor. She knew what she had gotten into. She knew the ceremony can't be done without her. That's why she ran away." Soun's eyes locked with Ranma's. "She choose power over honor. If she hadn't left, and this was all explained, she would still be my daughter. But she ran away. She chooses to run than to face reality. She doesn't deserve to be Tendo Akane. From this day on, she is no one. Nanashi."  
  
Ryouga sucked in his breath from the corner of the room. Nabiki paled. Kasumi have no expression at all on her face. Ukyou was white-lipped. Shampoo's eyes were widen in shock. Mousse sat there, unmoving, but Ranma can tell he was just as shocked as everyone else was.  
  
Soun looked at Ranma. "I have two daughters. My older daughter, Kasumi, 21. And my younger daughter, Nabiki, 19. Choose one of them, and she will be your fiancée."   
  
Ranma sat there, staring at the elder Tendo. There was a long silence. "No," he said simply. "I will not choose a fiancée. I already have a fiancée."  
  
Both Shampoo and Ukyou turned to look at him with hope in their eyes. Ranma swallowed. "My fiancée's name is...Akane. Tendo Akane. And I love her. I will not abandon her."  
  
There was a dead silence.  
  
Soun's voice is still cold, but his eyes held warmth and pride. "Alright. But I suggest you think this through before making anything permanent."  
  
"My decision is permanent," Ranma said, voice strong and confident.  
  
Soun stood up and walked away without answering. There was another long silence.  
  
"It doesn't matter who you choose to be your true fiancée," Cologne said, surprising Shampoo and Mousse.  
  
"But great-great-grandmoth-"  
  
"No buts, Shampoo," Cologne said, holding up one bony hand. "It is his choice, not ours." She locked eyes with Ranma. "Right now, we have a bigger problem." She let her eyes swept across the room, transferring the urgency of the situation to the others in the room. "We must find Akane as soon as possible."  
  
"First, tell us what's going on," Ranma said.  
  
Cologne nodded. "As I said before, there are three ultimate techniques; the Cat Fist, the Blood Fist, and the Demon Fist. I'm afraid to say that Akane had learned only HALF of the Demon Fist." She turned to Nabiki. "Tell me, about how many months were they alone together before your mother died?"  
  
"I don't remember but I think about two to three months."  
  
"It's three months. I remember it clearly," Kasumi said.   
  
Cologne nodded grimly. "Just as I guessed. Three months isn't even half as much time needed in order for Akane to learn, perfect, and control the Demon Fist. Over 80% people who tried to learn the Akurei-ken died. 19% of what was left had gone mad in the process of learning it. The last 1% is the amount of people who actually managed to learn it successfully. Only 1/2 of those 1% manage to live a year after learning the technique. So you see, this is a quite...dangerous technique to learn.   
  
"Akane was only 5 when she first learned it, and she only had three months before her mother, the only person who knew how to use the technique, died." Cologne looked at Nabiki and Kasumi. "I strongly suspect that the Demon Fist is the reason your mother died so suddenly." She paused to rest a moment before continuing.   
  
"Every person who tried to learn this technique have a focus point. I think Akane's focus point is that ruby pendent your mother gave her. The focus point is very important in this technique. The focus point kept the user of this technique sane while in Demon Fist mode."  
  
Ranma let what was just said sank in.  
  
"Here's the important part. Without the focus point, when going into Demon Fist mode, like how you go into the Cat Fist mode, the user would go on a killing spree. Without the focus point to keep it sane, it would destroy everything in its path. Because of that, people using this technique always keep the focus point on them, and consider them to be a connection to something divine." Cologne paused again. "I think that was why Akane destroyed that boy so utterly. He was a street rat, and was possibly trying to steal the pendent from Akane. When he tried to do that, Akane gone insane because she considered the pendent a connection to something divine, and she killed him. To keep him from becoming further threat, she tore him apart."  
  
Ukyou shuddered. She hadn't thought it was something this serious. It appears she's wrong. Very wrong.  
  
Shampoo swallowed. She couldn't imagine what it would be like to go insane and do the things her great-great-grandmother had just said. But she knew her great-great-grandmother would not lie about something so dangerous and important.  
  
Shampoo now knew at least one of the reasons why Akane left. If she goes insane like that, no one, not even one of her family members, will be able to stop her. And she could possibly kill one of her family. So Akane left to keep her family safe.   
  
And suddenly, Shampoo held a new respect for a girl named Tendo Akane.   
  
"So now you know what is going on," Cologne said. "I want each of you get a good night sleep, and we'll start the search tomorrow morning. Is that understood?"  
  
"Yes," everyone said in unison.  
  
"Good." Cologne watched as everyone filed out of the living room. After a few minutes later, only two people were left in the living room.  
  
"How long can a person stay sane after the focus point is removed?" Ranma asked seriously.  
  
Cologne narrowed her eyes. "Why do you ask?"  
  
Ranma looked at her grimly. "This is why." And in his hand is a small ruby pendent. On the back of the pendent was the name, Tendo Hiroko.  
  
~**~  
  
Something's wrong.  
  
Something is missing. I could feel it, like a hole in my soul. I reached up to my neck, wanting to feel the familiar warmth of the gem.  
  
It's gone.  
  
The one most important thing in my life is gone.  
  
NO!   
  
I'm scared. My heart is pounding within my chest, and it's beating faster and faster. I don't know what to do.  
  
It's gone. My link to Her is severed. I am no longer connected to Her.  
  
I took a deep breath. Stay calm, I told myself. I took another breath.   
  
And then, I screamed.  
  
~**~  
  
Cologne was at Ranma's side so quickly that she was nothing more than a blur. "Where did you get that?" she snapped out, snatching the pendent from Ranma's outstretched hand.   
  
"I found it a couple of days ago in a park I passed. I asked a few people if they'd seen Akane, but they all said no," Ranma replied grimly. "Uchan had to drag me away from there so that we can get back here."  
  
Cologne looked up from the pendent and stared at Ranma's face. "I have something to tell you, Son-in-law. As you know, I am quite powerful in Martial Arts." She paused. "But I will probably be killed if I go against Akane's Akurei-ken."  
  
Ranma stared at Cologne, stunned. "Wha-What?"  
  
"Remember when you used the Neko-ken to get the Phoenix Pill from me the last time we fought seriously?" Cologne asked. Ranma nodded mutely. "If you indeed went all out against me using the Neko-ken, I will definitely loose. The Neko-ken is the least powerful of the three ultimate techniques. In fact, the Neko-ken is a technique branched out from the Akurei-ken. Which means that even if you used Neko-ken against Akane, it won't work. She knows all the weakness of the Neko-ken." She paused again. "That might be one of the reason she's the only one who can subdue you when you are in Neko-ken.  
  
"Since I couldn't fight against you and win, I doubt I would be able to survive very long with Akane."  
  
"So. What's our plan now?" Nabiki asked from the doorway, her arms crossed in front of her, one eyebrow arching inquiringly.  
  
"Nabiki," Ranma blinked, dumbfounded. He never heard her approach.  
  
"I suppose you heard everything?" Cologne asked, but her tone sounded like a statement.  
  
Nabiki nodded mutely and stepped into the living room. Followed behind her were Ryouga, Ukyou, Shampoo, and Mousse.  
  
"We're going to find Akane, right now," Ryouga said, a frown on his face. "I'm not going to leave her out where ever she is just so we can get some sleep."  
  
"I think so, too," Ukyou said, agreeing with Ryouga. "It's not safe for Akane, or anyone else, for that matter, for her to stay out there, possibly out of control."  
  
"Shampoo agree with Spatula Girl and Pig Boy," Shampoo said, stepping up. "If great-great-grandmother thinks is dangerous, Shampoo will help. Besides, Shampoo admires Akane, for her strength. Shampoo do anything to help." Mousse was silent, like a shadow, standing slightly behind Shampoo. He simply nodded at Ranma.   
  
"Alright, let's go," Ranma said. He started to jump out, then turned around and smiled. "Thanks guys."  
  
Ukyou smiled back. "No problem, Ran-chan."  
  
"Come on," Ryouga said, jumping up and turned to Ranma. "I'll find Akane, first."  
  
Ranma grinned. "You're on."  
  
~**~  
  
I'm slipping. I can feel it, like hot coal on my bare back. I can feel myself slipping, slowly, but surly toward insanity.   
  
I am afraid.  
  
She is no longer there, to anchor me, or to pull me back from the insanity in which I often falls into. She is no longer there to protect me from harm. I feel like a five year-old again, shivering under the blankets, wishing that Mommy were here with me, fearing the monsters under my bed.   
  
I'm going on a continuous downward spiral. I'll reach the bottom soon, and I don't want that. I don't like that dark place down there. I hate it.  
  
'Mommy...Mother! Mother, help me!! HELP!!'  
  
And then, all is darkness.  
  
~**~  
  
"This is the place where I found the necklace," Ranma said, landing on the soft grass. The cold night breeze rushed by, making Ukyou shiver.  
  
"Are you sure this is the place?" Ryouga asked, looking around while putting Nabiki down on the ground. [4]  
  
"It's so quiet," Mousse added. As an almost blind Martial Artist, he learned to listen, and right now, he can hear no sound other than the normal night sounds.   
  
"This place look more like a small clearing in a forest, than a park," Nabiki commented looking at the trees surrounding them.  
  
"I'm positive this is the place," Ranma said. "Let's split up and look for her." He turned to look at each of them. "Shampoo, I want you to go with Mousse."  
  
"Bu-"   
  
"Shampoo," the Amazon matriarch said calmly, cutting the other Amazon warrior off quite effectively. "Do what he says." Shampoo nodded reluctantly.  
  
"Nabiki, I want you to go with Ryouga," Ranma continued. "Reason one, you can keep him from getting lost again. Reason two, he's more than capable enough to protect you if something happens." He looked up and locked eyes with a shocked Ryouga. He never complimented Ryouga before. It's always insults.  
  
"And Uchan will come with me," Ranma ended. Shampoo was about to protest again, but was silenced once again but the Amazon elder.   
  
"I suppose I will be searching alone," Cologne said, and Ranma shook his head.   
  
"No. You're coming with me and Uchan."  
  
Cologne raised an eyebrow but didn't object.   
  
"Meet back here in 20 minutes," Ranma said, using his hand to gesture to the area they will be covering. "If any of you sees Akane, don't try to fight her. Try not to even let her see you. One of you follow her while the other come to get me. Alright?" Everyone nodded, a grim determination on their faces. "Okay, then. Let's go."  
  
~**~  
  
"Anything?" Ranma asked twenty minutes later.  
  
"No," Ryouga said, shaking his head.  
  
"Nothing," Mousse added, taking his glasses off to wipe them.   
  
"We found nothing, either," Ranma said, frowning.   
  
"She's gotta be here somewhere," Ukyou said, turning to look into the darkness under the trees surrounding them. "If I lost something really, really important, I would stay at the place where I lost it and try to find it.   
  
  
"Akane is a lot like that," Nabiki said. "I doubt she would leave here until she found what she's looking for."  
  
No one said anything. And then, a screech filled the silence.   
  
~**~  
To be continued...  
~**~  
  
Send all comments to bailuli@hotmail.com Please do not flame me.  
  
[1] Akane is better than what most people think of her. And this is two years after Ranma arrived, and because of all the insanity that followed Ranma, she was almost forced to become at least as good as Ukyou, or else she could be killed, Ranma or not. In OVA series "One Grew Over Kuno's Nest", Akane did kept up with Ranma when they were ramming the pills down the phoenix's throat. The Akurei-ken helped, too.  
  
[2] I made the Code of Honor up, okay? It's not real! Hey, the author's gotta have her fun, ne? ^_^  
  
[3] Before you gasp in disbelieve and think I'm crazy; Soun is acting this way and not wailing is because of the honor thing. He doesn't want to do this, but he have to because of what Akane had done.   
  
[4] Nabiki is going with them in hopes of maybe subduing Akane because she's Akane's sister.  
  
Hope you liked what I've wrote so far! ^_^ Look for the second part in the future! 


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